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knee during a Scottish kayaking trip, Catriona immediately said yes.

But she also knew that a traditional wedding was not for her.

Catriona said: “I could think of nothing worse than a ‘normal’ wedding, with all the fuss and cost.

“So when I found out it was possible to marry in a wetsuit, it seemed like the only option for us.”

The couple, of Inverness, who have been together for more than a decade and now have two children, are big fans of Scotland’s west coast.

They chose Reiff in Sutherland as the perfect spot for their unusual nuptials.

Catriona said: “Reiff is very private and quiet and, when we went to look, we spotted a fabulous rock where we could stand for the ceremony.

“We then needed someone to marry us and a humanist celebrant, Sylvia Cameron, agreed.”

On April 15, 2007, 12 guests attended the wedding and six were wearing wetsuits, as well as the happy couple.

Catriona said: “It was so different and so cool to get married doing something that we love.

“We wore wetsuits as our wedding outfits and after the ceremony we enjoyed a coasteering outing along the shore.

“Everyone agreed this was a perfect way for two outdoors people who love the water to get married.”

The whole event, including the wedding and honeymoon to Orkney, cost £800.

Meanwhile Ashley and Craig Whiting eloped to a remote lochside spot on Skye.

Seeing friends stressed by the organisation of their costly traditional weddings convinced Ashley and Craig Whiting they would never bother themselves.

Yet the couple, who have a six-year-old-son, wanted to show their commitment to each other.

So they decided to elope – and get married their way.

Ashley, 28, of East Kilbride, said: “An internet search brought up the usual Gretna Green suggestions for eloping couples but it also revealed Loch Coruisk on Skye.

“It looked perfect and, because it is

only accessible by boat or on foot, we also knew it would be remote and very special.

“Skye is a place we’ve holidayed many times but we’d never been to Coruisk.”

The couple told only Ashley’s cousin and her husband of their plans and asked local celebrant John to help with the service.

Ashley said: “John had married another couple at Coruisk the year before and it was this wedding we spotted online.

“He confirmed how beautiful the spot was and told us about the Misty Isle boat from Elgol.”

While the bride wore a white dress, flower-print wellies and a waterproof jacket on her wedding

day in April this year, the groom Craig, 30, was dressed in a kilt.

The wedding day photos are stunning, with land and loch as the backdrop.

Ashley said: “We saw seals while we were being married and it was so quiet and romantic.

“Everyone was very surprised on our return home but they loved our unusual story.”

Rachael and James Wild chose the sands of Lunan Bay, Angus, for their outdoors wedding.

If you have visited Lunan Bay, you will know how impressive it is.

Yet until the day of their wedding, the Wilds had never stepped foot on the pristine sands.

It was a lucky find on Google Maps

FIONARUSSELL

MAKING A SPLASH Cailean and Catriona Macleod

wed in wetsuits at Reiff in Sutherland

KILTED OUT Ashley and Craig Whiting eloped to Loch Coruisk

on Skye and took son Oliver, a cousin and her husband

A new wedding trend sees couples turn their backs on traditional venues to get hitched in our dazzling great outdoors.. we find out why.

arriage in the UK has been back in fashion for several years, with figures showing

continued growth after decades in the doldrums.

And now one of the biggest trends is tying the knot in the great outdoors.

In Scotland, where marriage laws are freer, more couples are choosing to get married on hills, beaches and also at loch sides.

It seems the biggest demand is for humanist ceremonies, which are uniquely legal north of the border.

Tim Maguire, of the Humanist Society Scotland, said: “Latest figures

show that, for the first time,

Scottish humanist weddings account

for more than one in 10 of all

marriages.“Anecdotally, our

celebrants are saying that there is an increase in weddings

conducted outdoors, especially in unusual locations.”

“One humanist celebrant, John Howieson, reports that

most of his weddings are outdoors.John, a retired headteacher on the

Isle of Skye, said: “There has been a huge rise in the number of couples who want to be married outdoors on Skye and the west Highlands.

“This year, I have had an amazing 17 weddings at remote Loch Coruisk and there have been marriages in the hills of Skye, at other lochs and on remote beaches.”

He added: “The trend is incredible but understandable when you think about Scotland’s beautiful outdoor environment.”

Here, three couples tell us about their outdoor weddings.

Catriona Docherty and Cailean Macleod were married while coasteering in Sutherland.

When Cailean went down on one

Walk doWn the isle for dream day

‘‘We wanted to be close to nature in a beautiful place on our big day

WWW.fiona outdoors.co.uk